Pyongyang Restaurant in Amsterdam Closed

The Pyongyang Restaurant in Amsterdam has closed.  The restaurant, located in the west of the city in Osdorp, opened for business in January 2012.  It was a joint venture between a DPRK entity and two Dutch nationals.   Volkskrant reported that the restaurant was shuttered after a disagreement between the DPRK employees and the restaurant’s Dutch owners.  The DPRK restaurant workers contend that they were underpaid and exploited.  According to De Telegraff  the managing director of Pyongyang Restaurant, Remco van Daal said he believes that his DPRK partners wanted to establish the restaurant to obtain access to The Netherlands and secure Dutch work visas.  Mr. van Daal, who visited  the DPRK on several occasions, also said, “I don’t think we will ever go back to that country.”

Pyongyang Restaurant in western Amsterdam (Photo: Google image)

The Associated Press [AP] reports:

A North Korean restaurant in Amsterdam staffed by cooks and waitresses from the isolated country has closed its doors.

Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf reported Thursday that Pyongyang Restaurant’s closure was permanent and stemmed from a disagreement between its Dutch owners and North Korean staff.

The restaurant was an oddity, believed to be the only of its kind in Western Europe, though there are similar restaurants in Asia. Dutch labor authorities say North Koreans can get work visas for Europe under standard rules, but few do.

A woman who answered the phone at the restaurant said the establishment was closed. She couldn’t say for how long because she was not authorized to do so. Its website says it is closed “due to holidays.” Phone calls to the owner Thursday went unanswered.